Chance
by Fluttershy 2059123
Summary: Sakura stumbles across a girl drowning; after saving her and adopting her as her sister in a way, they begin to settle down, only to have Rookie nine and Gai's team stuck in their house during a blizzard. A dangerous game of truth or dare reveals secret new feelings. Edited and revised!


**(?'s POV)**

One second I'm gliding peacefully over the frozen waters of a lake, the next, I'm drowning. I don't recall what happened. White hair with streaks of light blue and light purple float out around me. My face is freezing cold though I can't feel anything else; I barely register the feeling when two arms wrap around my small waist, pulling me out of the water. My eyes are half closed, and my fingers are turning blue as the light from the full moon becomes steadily brighter.

When we resurface, I black out.

**(Sakura's POV)**

I am walking in the foot of new snow outside of the village when I see a girl skating on a frozen lake. I stop walking and watch her for a while. She is a little bit smaller than me, with small curves, but they are there. She has ice blue eyes and white hair with streaks of light blue and light purple in it; her arms are out to balance herself while she twirls in a circle.

I look away for a second and hear a loud cracking noise. Looking back, I notice that there was a gaping hole in the ice and that the girl wasn't there. I gasp as I realize that she must've fallen into the water. Pumping chakra into my feet, I race to the lake and jump into the water. It was freezing, but I keep swimming till I get to her.

Her eyes are half closed and I'm guessing that she was half conscious. I finally reach her, grabbing her small waist I pull her up to the surface and climb out with her tightly in my arms.

I bring us to solid ground and start to push my hands onto her chest, every few moments breathing into her mouth and waiting to see her chest rise and fall a couple times before I push down on her chest. I do this about five times before she coughs up the water in her lungs. She gasps for air multiple times, but doesn't wake up. So, I pick her up and start running back to the village at top speed.

When we reach the village, I immediately go to the hospital. Once inside, I get her a room and warm her up, changing her into new clothes so she doesn't get sick. Afterwards, I walk over to a fireplace in the hospital that was recently placed here, to keep patients warm when they come inside from the cold. I move my hands out towards the fire and warm myself up before grabbing an extra pair of clothes that I have in the closet, because I'm here almost everyday for hours on end.

Walking to the staff's bathrooms, I change into the new clothes and place my wet ones in a plastic bag. When I finish, I go back to the girl's room and get comfy in a chair near her bed.

**The Next Day~Morning**

I slowly open my eyes and find myself sitting in a chair near a hospital bed. The bed has a girl in it, and I suddenly remember what happened last night. I watch her, she sleeps peacefully, but soon opens her icy blue eyes.

"Good morning. How are you feeling today?" I ask her softly.

"What? What happened, where am I?" panic fills her voice.

"You're in the Konoha Hospital in the Land of Fire. I saved you after I saw you drowning and brought you here. I am a trained medic and will be looking after you for a little while to make sure you aren't injured. Okay?" I say as I get up and walk over to her.

"Oh, uh, okay." she nods and hides behind her bangs of white.

I watch her from my peripheral vision as I check her vitals and see if I can find out anything about her. She watches me as I work from behind her bangs but soon I smile and ask her if she needs anything. She chirps up immediately with an enthusiastic 'yes!'.

"Can you get me some food please? I'm so hungry!"

I nod and leave to get her food. When I come back she looks up at me excitedly and smiles brightly as I place the tray of food in her lap.

"Is there anything else before I go?"

She thinks for a moment before nodding hesitantly.

"Can, you stay here with me?"

I pause to consider it before nodding, it wasn't officially my shift yet, so I have time to kill before then. I sit back in the chair next to her bed as she downs the food in minutes. I laugh lightly at her happy expression once she's full and she grins at me.

"So, what is your name miss?" I ask as she moves the tray aside.

"I'm Lia R. Grace, but you can call me Lia. You are the first person to be nice to me in years, so thank you!" she chirps.

I nod with a weak smile, "You're welcome. If you don't mind me asking, why am I one of the first people to be nice to you in years?"

"Oh, well you see..." she trails off before getting a determined look in her eye, she loudly exclaims, "people don't like me because they fear me since when I was little I would have random, explosive outbursts of immense power that destroyed many homes within a few miles radius. But, can that be a secret between you and me, please?"

I nod without hesitation, for some reason I want her to trust me, and I know she is safe for the most part. There's nothing to be afraid of. She begins telling me her life story, how when she was younger her family often had to move villages because of her power outbursts that would destroy their house. That her mother taught her how to ice skate and that's how she later got her power under control and she went to a ninja school that further deepened her control. Her worst fears, her favorite things, and how just a few years ago her parents died in a mysterious black fire that wouldn't go out; 'Amaterasu' I chime in when she pauses.

Lia explained _everything_ about her, and I knew she put a lot of sudden faith and trust into me not telling anyone about her, so I didn't utter a word other then the basic information when Tsunade burst into the room after hearing I brought food to this room.

"Would you care to explain to me why this girl is not checked into the hospital and why you came to work before your shift yet did _nothing_?" Tsunade speaks with a strained calmness.

I gaze at her with a calm look and speak with no emotions lurking in my voice, a thing I taught myself how to do after a while of being easily read by people, "One, I forgot to check her in, and two, I was taking care of her and staying as company which she _asked_ for."

Tsunade heaves a calming breath, "I see. Well, please go check her into the hospital now. It would prove a hassle to have someone else think this room is open for another patient, only to find out it's not."

I nod stiffly and smile to Lia who smiles back brightly, before leaving the room, taking the empty tray with me. I make sure to be quick as I check her into the room officially and put the tray back in the kitchen. The chef asks if the food was good and I nod with a smile, saying she downed it in moments. When I make it back into the room, Lia is sound asleep, snoring softly, so I leave and check in for my shift.

Two days pass until Lia is finally allowed to leave the care of the hospital, though I think she could have left sooner, but they needed to get information out of her. She didn't budge, only complained that she wanted to leave because it was stuffy being in the room for so long. I meet Lia outside of Konoha Hospital after my shift; she took the liberty to check out a few things while she waited for me. Lia gazes silently at the Hokage Tower before turning to me suddenly, excitedly with a bright, hopeful smile.

"I want to live here! Do you think you can help me become a citizen of Konoha, Sakura? Please?" she asks.

I nod without hesitation and lead her to the Hokage Tower with her skipping behind me happily. We soon make it to the top level and I knock on the door to Tsunade's office. She answers boredly with a 'come in'.

I open the door and step inside, Lia steps in a moment later and Tsunade raises an eyebrow.

"What is it you two need of me?" she asks.

"Lia wants to become a citizen of Konoha and I am here to get her application forms for it, if that is alright?"

Lady Tsunade peers at Lia then at me before nodding her head, mumbling incoherent words as she gets up and walks over to a shelf of papers and books. She pulls a file out and has Lia fill it out completely. The process takes nearly an hour, but by the end, it is worth it.

"Lia R. Grace, I hereby declare you a citizen of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. You can train at the academy to become a full fledged ninja since it says here you went to one but never graduated. Or, you can become a normal citizen, it is your choice."

Lia squeals and runs over to Tsunade, gathering her into a quick hug before jumping back and dancing around the room excitedly. I laugh at this and Tsunade smiles gently. Lia suddenly becomes serious and turns towards Tsunade, the sudden change makes us both wary.

"Lady Hokage, I want to become a ninja, but is there any way I can skip the academy and simply take the chuunin exams when they come around in a few months? I may not have officially become a ninja, but that was only because I had to move before I could get my headband. I only had a day left before I graduated! Please allow me to skip the academy if I retake the last day and get a headband. I can assure you, you won't regret it."

Tsunade mulls the words over in her head, coming to a slow agreement.

"I suppose that is alright, but you will take a week of school to ensure you know everything, then you are allowed to graduate. Do I make myself clear?"

Lia nods vigorously, "Yes madam! Thank you very much miss Godaime!"

"You are welcome. You start tomorrow and will be there on time and will behave, or you will take a full course like new students hoping to become genin. Is that clear?"

"Yes Tsunade!"

"Alright. Sakura, I hope you will find her a place to live. But with how attached she is to you, I suspect you two will live together?"

I contemplate quickly before nodding with a smile.

"Alright, you are dismissed."

We bow and leave her office, walking down the hall in near silence until Lia breaks it.

"Sakura?"

"Hmm?"

"Is it okay if I live with you? I will help you shop and once I become a ninja I will earn money to help you pay rent. Please let me stay with you?"

I sigh, "I suppose. But you better become a good ninja, that way you will earn a lot of money, okay? They you can buy your own clothes- actually, speaking of which, we should get you some now while I'm thinking about it."

"Really?" her eyes sparkle.

"Yeah, so come on! You can meet some of my friends to while we're at it."

I take Lia to the shopping district. We walk side by side down the streets of Konoha; she stops multiple times to look at something or to point something out, and she skips while moving from vendor to vendor. I look up at the sky only to see ominous dark snow clouds. I speed up my pace and Lia trots to keep up.

"Where are we going?" Lia asks, looking at me suddenly as we walk along.

"We are going to see my friend Ino, she has a shop in the area so we might as well go." I don't mention the storm.

"Okay, that sounds like fun." Lia says, turning to look back at the vendors and shops.

Soon we arrive outside of the Yamanaka's Flower Shop. The place smells strongly of flowers, of course; I take a deep breath before opening the door. A small bell rings above our heads, causing Lia to look up. She then looks around and gasps at all the beautiful flowers in vases and pots.

"Hey billboard brow! How are you- um, hey Sakura, who's that?" Ino asks looking at Lia who is currently poking a rose petal curiously.

"Oh, that's Lia. I found her drowning so I saved her and she's going to be living with me from now on." I say.

"What? You saved her from drowning? That's nice. She has white hair, is it natural?"

"Lia, is your hair a genetic disorder?" I ask her as she shuffles along the aisle.

"A what?" she looks at me as confusion sweeps across her face.

"Is your hair... natural?" I try simplifying it; luckily she understands and she nods.

"Yep! I got my hair from my mom who I suppose did have a genetic disorder as you said."

"Ah..."

Ino nods, having listened to our conversation while seemingly tallying up some payments.

"Yeah, so anyway, I am showing Lia around town since she's a new citizen here-" I'm oh so rudely interrupted by my best friend.

"Wait, does that mean that I'm the first person you're visiting?!" Ino claps her hands excitedly.

"Yeah, but how did you figure that out?" she easily leads me off topic and I duly let her.

"I just knew. Anyway, hey Lia!" Lia looks at Ino, tilting her head to the side slightly like a puppy when it's curious. Her white hair falls into her face and Ino squeals, "You are just too cute! So, anyway, Lia, do you like that flower?"

"Yes, it's very pretty, and it has a nice scent." Lia says, looking back at the white rose in her hand that she picked up while Ino and I were talking.

"Yeah, that's my favorite, well my second favorite. My first favorite is a red rose, it signifies a passionate love!" Ino sighs dreamily.

"I see, what does a white rose mean?" Lia asks innocently.

"It can mean five things actually; purity, innocence, secrecy, humility, and youthfulness. And together, it's such a sweet thing!" Ino states.

"That's nice. May I have two please?" Lia asks sweetly.

"Of course dear!" Ino says. Ino grabs two white roses and puts them in a plastic wrap. She sprays them with water to make them last longer until they can get into a vase of water. And then she ties it with a ribbon before handing it to Lia.

"That will be 100 yen please." Ino says slyly.

"Fine, here." I fish the money from my pouch and shove it into her nearly flawless hands, "Thanks Ino! See you around!" I shout, walking out of the shop while waving over my shoulder.

"I like her, she's nice." Lia says smiling softly at the roses as she trails slightly behind me.

"Yeah, she can be if she wants to be I guess." I sigh, "Come on now, we should go buy you some jeans and a few shirts."

"Okay!" Lia cheers, skipping beside me.

Soon we finish shopping, she got four pairs of nice dark blue jeans, ten or so t-shirts in various colors, and two new pairs of shoes, ninja sandals, and boots for the winter which is just kicking up into full blast. We walk outside and are instantly shivering from the cold that blasts at us, surprisingly, so we quickly walk over to a small cafe across the street.

Once we are inside, I see my friends, Tenten and Hinata sitting at a booth. Waving, I walk over to them with Lia following close behind me. Hinata notices us first and she waves. Tenten looks to where Hinata is waving and when she sees us she smiles.

"You two look cold!" Hinata says quietly.

"Yeah! It's freezing out there!" I say.

"Do you what something? It's on the house, I'm buying." Tenten says, looking at me. I nod and ask Lia if she wants something to drink.

"Can I have some hot chocolate?" Lia speaks so softly I can barely hear her.

"Of course! One hot chocolate and some, hmm..." I ponder over what I'll get as I glance at the menu before answering quickly, "And I'll have some green tea with two packets of sugar." I tell the person who makes the drinks. He smiles at me and nods.

"So uh, Sakura, who is that?" Tenten says, looking at Lia who is sitting next to me admiring her roses.

"That's Lia, I found her drowning so I saved her. She doesn't have anyone to return to, so I get to keep her." I say, smiling slightly at the end, no matter how sad it is.

"Oh, that's good, that you get to keep her, not that she doesn't have anyone to return to." Tenten stumbles over trying to find the right words before she gives up with a sigh.

Hinata and I giggle softly at her. "Oh Lia, these are my friends, Tenten and Hinata." I say, pointing to them both. Lia looks at them and smiles.

"Nice to meet you." Lia says still smiling.

"Yeah, same here. So Lia, how old are you?" Tenten asks.

"I'm seventeen."

Hinata chokes on her drink and stares at Lia. Tenten looks at Lia with a funny expression. I merely blink in surprise.

"You sure about that?"

"Yes, I'm sure. But don't worry, I get that a lot." Lia smirks.

"I see. Here's your cocoa, drink it carefully, it's normally hot." Hinata advises.

"Okay, thanks Hinata." Lia says, before she sips the hot drink as slow as possible.

Hinata, Tenten and I watch her with amusement as she slowly sips her cocoa, finding it cute that she took our warnings into consideration and exaggerated it. We smile at each other and finish our drinks at a leisurely pace. We wait for Lia to finish then stand up and groan at the aspect of having to face the cold again.

Placing the bill on the counter along with a tip, we wrap our coats around ourselves, trying to cover as much of our necks and face as possible before we walk out of the shop and into the cold air of December. Instantly the five of us begin shivering; our teeth chatter and our noses burn a bright red from the light flurries of icy snow that wisps around the village and land on our faces. I blink rapidly as we shuffle quickly down the roads towards our homes.

While clutching our bags, I yell over the wind that picks up and soon begins howling.

"Do you guys want to stay at my house?! It's much closer than either of yours!" I yelp as the cold bites at my throat.

"Yes please!" Tenten yells back and we tread through the gathering snow as fast as we can towards my house.

On the way we pass the Yamanaka Flowers, their flower shop. I squint to see a figure hurrying towards us, but I don't slow down, for I want to get out of the damn cold. Soon enough though Ino appears, frantic as she rushes to fall into pace with us.

"Ino! What's up with you? Why aren't you at home?" I shout over the roar of the gale.

Ino yelps as she opens her mouth, startled by the bite of the cold in her throat, but quickly yells, "I locked myself out and it was really cold in the shop so I ran outside after seeing you guys go by! I was hoping I could stay the night with you Sakura?!"

"Sure thing!" I bellow and we shut our mouths to focus on moving forward to get out of the near blinding snow. It will turn into a blizzard I just know it, and we need to get out of the storm before it gets worse.

When we finally reach my house, I hurriedly take out my keys and insert them into the lock, twisting the key until the door unlocks and we scramble inside into the warmth. I turn and lock the door after leaning my weight against it just to close it. With a sigh of relief I kick my shoes off and shrug out of my coat, watching as my friends do the same.

Almost as one we move further into the house, being enveloped by the heat from my heaters that turn on and off automatically, makes us sigh in synch. I move into my kitchen and Lia follows me. I gather up supplies to make soup and she follows me as I move around the kitchen, it almost reminds me of a lost puppy, especially with the cute, curious expression on her face.

"What are you doing?" she finally asks.

"I'm going to make soup for us to warm us up internally. Did you want to help?" I glance at her and she nods enthusiastically.

"Of course! But uh, where should I put my stuff?"

I slap myself softly in the face, I am so stupid to forget that she's gonna live here with us now. By us, I mean myself and Inner who has been very quiet lately. She only comes out sometimes when I don't physically take my frustrations out on someone or something, that's how I vent and what I normally did when I was younger before I found a way to release my feelings; through training.

"Oh, sorry. Come on, I'll show you your new room." I walk out of the kitchen and through my medium sized house.

Walking through the hallways I turn to the left and open a door to a spare room that has a bed made neatly for whenever my friends want to spend the night. Normally it's Ino who sleeps here, but I make the bed once she leaves and just changed the bedding recently so it's clean for Lia. She skips into the room and smiles as she puts her bags down by the foot of the queen sized bed, still grasping her two roses.

Lia spins around a couple times to take in the bare room, but she seems to love it and soon I find her gazing out the window contently. I open the bags and sort through them, putting the underwear and bras into the top drawer of the dresser that sits on the wall facing the foot of the bed.

**(Lia's POV)**

I turn and watch Sakura put away my clothing like a mother hen, or a good big sister. I roll my eyes, she will be my adopted sister from now on, not my adopted mother. With that in mind I get up and tackle her into a hug which earns a surprised grunt from her.

"Sakura! You are going to be my new adopted big sister! Okay?" I cheer quietly.

"Okay!" she happily responds and turns around to hug me back.

I giggle and help her put away the rest of my clothes then follow my new sister out to the kitchen again where we find Ino and Tenten arguing over which soup recipe to make. Hinata stands awkwardly behind them, trying to intervene, but being too shy to be much louder than she is now. Sakura quickly shoves them aside and flips through her recipe book before they can argue more. The two girls get up, huffing irritably at Sakura as she chooses a recipe for them; homemade vegetable beef soup.

My lips twitch into a wide grin at the name, I loved this kind of soup! While Sakura pulls out everything, Ino helps me find a vase to put the roses in. We find a tall, thin vase under the bathroom sink and she fills it with water before I place the two roses in it. The two of us end up putting the vase on the dining table right in the center of it; we eventually make our way back into the kitchen.

Sakura finishes pulling out the necessary ingredients which include: frozen green beans, two pounds of ground beef, salt, ground black pepper, two 46 fluid ounces of tomato-vegetable juice cocktail, two onions, eight red potatoes, six carrots, and two 15 ounce cans of whole kernel corn (**1**). She gets us 'under control' by yelling and threatening to beat Tenten and Ino to bloody pulps if they don't shut up that instant. They snap their mouths shut and instead settle for sending glares at each other.

Sakura puts each one of us in charge of something. She grabs a big pot and places it on a cold burner before smashing the beef while Tenten chops the onions, Ino dices the potatoes finely and Hinata and I work on the carrots. Hinata is gentle as she helps me slice the carrots into long, thin strips. I smile at her widely and she praises me when I get the hang of it. We work in relative silence until Sakura turns the burner on and places the beef into it. Ino and Tenten soon gather handfuls of their vegetables and drop them into the warming pot. Once the ingredients are in, Sakura places a lid over the pot and lets it sit for about ten minutes, checking it constantly while we work on cutting and dicing and measuring out things.

Hinata and I slide the carrots into a bowl, add a 1/2 cup water into it, mix it slightly, then put it in the microwave for five minutes. We mix together the ingredients Ino and Tenten chop and measure, in a large pot too until the carrots and water mix is done, and the beef and veggies are cooked. Sakura adds the beef mix into the pot of other ingredients once she drains it, and puts the pot on the stove, allowing it to simmer on low for a while.

We clean up our mess and wash the used dishes while we wait for the large amount of soup to be done. Once it is, we grab bowls, a serving spoon, and dish ourselves up. The five of us gather around the dining table and begin eating. Suddenly a loud knock is heard on the door and we choke on our mouthfuls of soup, being startled by the sudden noise; luckily it was just broth that we choke on, so it is nothing too serious.

Sakura recovers first and gets up to answer the door. She quickly unlocks the door and opens it, stepping aside immediately to allow the people inside. They tumble to the ground but briskly get up and scramble inside, shoving each other in while they're at it.

**(Sakura's POV)**

For some odd reason, I find myself opening the door to allow Shikamaru, Naruto, Neji, Shino, Choji, Kiba, Sai, Akamaru and Lee inside, out of the blizzard which is now in full force. They stumble inside and I instantly slam my weight against the door to close it; though I could have used my inhumane strength, I tend to not do it when at home so I don't break things on accident. Either way, they make themselves at home, kicking their shoes off and taking off their coats, for the most part putting them on the rack, and wandering into the kitchen where the soup sits.

I realize that Kiba and Naruto must have led them here after doing something, probably training by the look and smell of it, because of the scent of food. I sigh and quickly follow them into the kitchen where I find them rummaging through my cabinets to find bowls. Well, really it's Kiba, Lee and Naruto, but I glare at all of them.

"Hey, hey, hey! Don't come into my house and make yourselves at home like this! Just because you are hungry doesn't mean you can come into my house and help yourselves to whatever! Stand in a line! NOW!" I yell at them.

Kiba glares at me for my loudness, having sensitive ears, but I glare back tenfold and his determination to face off with me withers away. They get into a line, heaving sighs; I notice their fingers turning red, along with their cheeks, noses, and ears, caused by the sudden warmth after being in the cold. I sigh and grab eight bowls then dish them up evenly and hand it to the next person in line. They take their bowls and move into the dining room, only to come back a second later for spoons. Once the last person is dished up, I gather spoons and walk back to the dining table. Moving swiftly, I place the spoons in the remaining seats and then leave a pile in the center of the table once the chairs are gone.

Sitting down, I notice the boys grabbing spoons and either sitting down or standing against the walls to eat. Tenten, Hinata and Ino roll their eyes at the unexpected company, though Lia looks intrigued by the sudden 'guests'. Suddenly though, they notice Lia and tense slightly.

"Who is she?" Neji asks calmly.

"This is Lia Grace, my new adopted sister. Lia this is Naruto, Kiba, Shino, Shikamaru, Neji, Lee, Sai, and Choji." I point at the boys, one by one pointing them out and introducing them to her and vice versa.

They wave or nod in greeting and Lia smiles at them shyly. We resume eating silently, sort of; Lee and Naruto end up arguing about how their serving of soup tastes better until I snap at them and threaten to cut their balls off if they don't shut up. They shrink back in fear and Lia giggles lightly.

**(Kiba's POV)**

I turn when small giggles sound from the table. I lean against the wall next to Neji but shift my head to the left and see the girl, Lia, covering her mouth with the back of her hand as she giggles. I find my lips twitching at the pleasant sound and Akamaru nudges my leg beside me. Sakura forgot to introduce him to Lia because he was still in the entryway trying to dry off. He whines quietly and I smile at him, bending down to pet his head, though I don't have to bend a moment later as he stands up to his full height. When Akamaru stands next to me, he comes up to my shoulder.

Suddenly a loud squeal sounds and we all flinch at the sharp noise; the squeal turns to choking and gagging as the person chokes on a mouthful of soup. Sakura quickly jumps into action and slaps the back of Lia's back. Lia smiles weakly at her then turns to me and Akamaru with a brilliant grin. Her pearly white teeth gleam in the light and her eyes brim with happiness.

"Oh my gosh! I didn't know you had a companion! What's his name? He's so cute!" she spoke quickly but her voice was soft even though she was excited.

She inhales sharply to catch her breath and I speak, "This is Akamaru." I say proudly.

Lia grins and calls him to her; Akamaru glances at me and I shrug in response. He trots over to her, wagging his tail slightly as she smiles brighter and reaches out to pet him. I watch as the two interact for a while before Akamaru bounds back to my side and Lia starts eating again.

He barks with a dog-grin, "_She's cool! You'll like her a lot!_"

I roll my eyes and turn back to eating my soup, biting back the retort on the tip of my tongue.

**(Normal POV)**

After another five minutes the group finish eating and they file into the kitchen to wash their dishes. Sakura makes sure the dishes are washed thoroughly, then dries them off and places them back into the cabinets where they belong. They move into the spacious living room which is bare except for a single couch, an end table on one side of the couch with a lamp in the center of it, and a low table with a tv on it. Awkwardly everyone stands in the center of the room in an odd sort of half circle, though it is greatly deformed.

Suddenly Ino pipes up with a smile.

"So... sleep over!"

The lot share glances and Sakura sighs, "I suppose I can't kick you out into a blizzard. You guys can sleep in here tonight and we will be in my room. I'll go get blankets and pillows."

She moves silently out of the room and teeters back a few moments later carrying a large stack of blankets. Sakura goes back into the hallway and grabs pillows before coming back into the room and dumping them on the stack of blankets. They fall off the sides and land around the pile. Tenten smiles and flashes the boys a grin a moment prior to grabbing Ino's and Hinata's hands and dragging them out of the room. Lia inches towards the doorway silently.

"The bathroom is down the hall to your left. If you need something, don't be afraid to ask but don't come into my room unless you _knock_ and are _given permission__._ Okay?" she stresses the words greatly as they nod and she leaves the room, motioning for Lia to follow as she passes her.

Lia turns back to them, and with a small wave she giggles, "Bye!" and darts after Sakura.

The girls run to Sakura's room and Ino, Tenten and Hinata double over with laughter when the two enter the room, closing the door behind them with a firm, loud but gentle, slam as the wood splinters under the pressure. Sakura raises an eyebrow at them but joins into their contagious laughter. Lia giggles softly and they sit in a circle in the center of Sakura's pale green room. The five get to talking and they laugh, snorting occasionally.

"I can't... believe you actually _did_ that! That's... that's hilarious!" Tenten gasps in between laughter.

Hinata wipes her eyes, "I know! So... funny!" she whispers with a giggle.

"Wait, wait, wait. Lia?" Ino suddenly asks once their loud chortling slows down.

"Yeah?" Lia turns towards Ino.

"How come Sakura says you have such immense power and I am unable to sense any of it? I mean, Akamaru would have freaked out if you have such power as you claim you do." she pauses hesitantly then cuts herself off.

"That's because I mask it-"

"All the time?" Tenten butts in quickly.

Lia nods with a shy smile.

"I don't believe you." Tenten snaps; though she says it as politely as she can.

"Do you want me to show you?"

They nod eagerly and Lia sighs.

"Okay, but you asked for it."

They share flashes of brief concern as Lia stands up and Hinata activates her byakugan as Lia bows her head and closes her eyes, concentrating. She releases only the slightest bit, but it is enough for everyone in the household, and anyone, ninja or non-ninjas alike, to sense the condensed fleeting grace of massive chakra. Hinata blanches the second Lia releases it though she regains control immediately afterwards so she doesn't cause too much alarm.

They hear the guys rushing up the stairs and they move away from the door just as it is kicked in. They flinch but continue to stare at Lia in shock and slight fear.

"What the heck happened?!" Naruto roars as they burst into the room. Sakura glares at them for kicking her door off its hinges, but she doesn't respond other than that.

"Oh, uh, I just... you know-" Lia searches for words frantically, startled slightly by their sudden entrance.

"Spit it out already!" Kiba barks.

Lia grins as she gets her bearings, "I released a bit of chakra! That's all."

They all pale at this, "A bit?" they yelp.

She nods happily.

"How the heck do you have that much chakra? Naruto doesn't even have that much power and he's got the kyuubi in him!" Sakura finally says.

"Really? That's cool!" Lia grins at him while tilting her head to the right, "My father was a jinchuuriki before he was killed by people hunting him down for his tailed beasts."

"The Akatsuki perhaps?" Ino murmurs.

Lia thinks for a moment before nodding slowly, "The name sounds familiar, so it probably was. But they failed... so it doesn't really matter."

"What do you mean they failed?" Shikamaru asks cautiously.

"They killed your father, didn't they?"

"Well no. He died afterwards from emptying his chakra reserves and blood loss. My mom died in a black fire that burned nonstop; Sakura says it was Amaterasu. But my sister, who died seven years ago, was the jinchuuriki for the two tails. Her name was Yugito Nii."

"Nii? Grace? Why don't you have the same last names if you ar-were, sisters?" Sai asks.

Lia smiles weakly, "Our parents wanted to give us last names to create a void between us. I only ever saw her a few times since she was fourteen by the time I was born. The huge age gap and the fact our parents wanted us to stay separated for the most part, made sure we didn't really know each other, but it doesn't matter now. But, I come from a very powerful clan and family since there are jinchuuriki. I myself am not one, but I have the strength of two and the raw power of my mother's ancestors who were like gods. At least, that's what my mom told me..."

Twelve faces glance at one another as they try to find a way to reply, but they come up with only silence. After a while the boys apologize for knocking over the door and leave the room after Sakura makes them fix it. So, the five girls sit in an awkward silence until Tenten sighs and turns towards Lia who long since sat back down.

"So, you are pretty powerful..." Lia nods once, "Yeah... but uh, how come that tiny spurt of chakra felt so... _strong_?"

Hinata speaks up then, visibly shaken by the immense chakra the smaller girl possesses, "H-her chakra was v-very compressed and the spurt o-of chakra was a single wave of g-greatly condensed c-chakra..." she trails off weakly.

The others nod in understanding and they sit again in a more comfortable silence. A while later Ino pumps her fist into the air without warning and exclaims, "Let's play Truth or Dare!". Tenten shakes her head with a sigh but nods as do the others. Lia's eyes shimmer with excitement at the prospect of getting to play a new game. Ino sits up straight with a smile, clasping her hands in her lap, but then she gets up and motions for them to follow her. The five girls saunter downstairs and Ino leads them into the living room, they pause only to exclaim, "We're coming in!" before they walk into the room and sit down in a semicircle in the middle of the floor.

"Come on guys, get in a circle! We are going to play Truth or Dare!"

"No." Neji, Shino, Choji, and Shikamaru instantly say duly as one. Sai merely shakes his head firmly.

"You have to! Please? I'll keep begging until you give in! Please~?!" Ino drags out the last word till she gasps for breath and begins again.

Sakura rolls her eyes, "The only rule is if you chicken out you must strip off a single piece of clothing."

Kiba, Lee, and Naruto sit down somewhat quickly, though their friends lack most interest, they raise an eyebrow, their curiosity getting the better of them as they slowly move to sit in the circle. With a sigh the four finally sit down. The gang make themselves comfortable as they wait for Ino who soon perks up and sits straight again.

"I'll go first!" Ino grins, "Sakura!" Sakura's eyes flicker towards her, "Truth or dare?"

Sakura taps her index finger to her chin in thought, her eyes roll to the ceiling, then she smiles, "Dare!"

Ino's eyes glint mischieviously and her grin twists into a wider, slightly wicked one, "Alright... I dare you to... make out with Tenten for thirty seconds."

Sakura rolls her eyes, muttering 'pig' under her breath as she crawls over to Tenten who blushes and averts her eyes. They draw close together as they kiss, their faces blush brilliantly by the time they pull away and Ino wolf whistles teasingly, a few others join in. Sakura takes a moment to catch her breath before her eyes roam over the people gathered. Light green eyes land on Neji and she smirks.

"Neji, truth or dare?" she asks lightly.

"Truth." he responds almost immediately.

"Ah, you're no fun Neji. But fine, in your lifetime, have you ever fallen in love with someone romantically?"

He takes a moment to think before shaking his head. Sakura sighs, she had guessed that and she was right, so boring. Neji locks gazes with Kiba who looks at him determined.

"Hinata," he suddenly turns towards his cousin who looks up with a gasp.

"Truth or dare?"

"T-t-truth." she manages to mutter.

"Hinata, have you mastered your new jutsu that you've been working on?" Neji asks calmly.

Hinata smiles and nods; Neji smiles back, his eyes hold a tenderness to them though he tries to hide it. Hinata looks around the circle and finally her eyes land on Lia. Lia looks at her curiously and Hinata smiles gently.

"Lia, truth or dare?"

"Um... dare?"

"Was that a question or a statement?" Ino asks.

"Uh..." Lia cuts herself off.

Hinata nods understandingly, "Truth. Okay, Lia, h-have you ever-"

"Had your first kiss yet?" Ino butts in enthusiastically.

Hinata sends a small glare in Ino's direction, but she doesn't notice and urges Lia to answer her question anyway. Lia looks between Ino and Hinata and soon answers Ino, much to her delight.

"No, not yet." she replies truthfully.

"Do you have a certain someone in mind for the first kiss?" Ino wiggles her eyebrows suggestively and Sakura growls.

"Ino! Only one question!" Sakura hisses.

Naruto nods vigorously, "Yeah Ino. Sakura-chan is right, only one question!"

Ino rolls her eyes and sits back in defeat. Lia turns towards Sakura.

"Sakura?"

"Hmm?"

"Truth or dare?"

"Truth."

Lia thinks back for a moment before innocently asking, "Are you all still trying to find Sasuke Uchiha?"

A sharp intake of breaths sound from around the circle, the name was like taboo. They hadn't been able to catch Sasuke or keep track of his movements ever since he joined the Akatsuki a while before. And Sakura still seemed to have a thing for him, so they tried hard not to utter his name unless she wasn't in the room. Sakura tensed visibly at the name but relaxed seconds later and shrugged.

"Who knows, we haven't been able to catch him and I don't think we ever will. We don't want to give up hope, but he may never come back..."

Lia nods but then quickly adds, "About earlier, can you all promise not to tell anybody about my abilities, please?"

"Why?" Shikamaru inquires suspiciously.

"Because, people like to use me for my power, and I don't want to have to escape from it here. Okay?"

"Okay..." an uncomfortable silence ensues, before Naruto breaks it.

"But Lia, how did you even know about Sasuke?" Naruto asks, his voice holds slight anger and frustration.

"The name, Sasuke Uchiha, is big all over the place. I especially heard it when I was roaming in the Land of Fire before I came to Konoha."

A silent understanding flows over the room and they sit quietly while Sakura tries to choose who her next 'victim' is.

"Shino, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

Sakura sighs at the lameness of the group, "Alright... Do you, have a crush on anybody in this room?"

Shino takes his time in shaking his head, making them roll their eyes.

"Kiba, truth or dare?" Shino asks.

Kiba grins that it's finally his turn, "Dare!"

"I dare you to act like a cat until it's your turn again."

"What?!"

"You must act like a cat,"

Naruto laughs, "You have to make cat noises too!"

Akamaru huffs out a breath of air beside his master. Kiba growls but complies and begins mimicking a cat to the best of his ability, though he gets a lot of help from the rest of the people in the room. They go around for another hour or so before they decide they should go to bed, or at least to their respected rooms. The five girls go back upstairs to Sakura's room while the guys get up and decide who sleeps on the couch. Naruto ends up on the couch and the others grab blankets and pillows then spread out on the floor.

Meanwhile in Sakura's room, the girls get into a tight circle on the ground again and resume playing truth or dare despite some protests.

"Ino, truth or dare?" Tenten says.

"Mm, dare."

"Okay, I dare you to go downstairs and ask them if they like any of us!"

Ino nods and happily goes downstairs. She comes back up and says with interest, "Naruto likes Hinata, Neji likes Tenten, Sai likes me, yay, and Kiba likes, Lia."

Lia gasps and turns to Ino with wide eyes.

"What?"

"Well, he said you were interesting and he didn't know for sure if he likes you yet. But still!" Ino squeals.

Lia's face flushes and she buries her face in her hands.

Hinata passes out once she hears that Naruto likes her. Sakura sighs, and then look at Ino.

"So, no one likes me?" Sakura asks somewhat sadly.

Tenten and Lia look at her with sympathy.

"That's not what I said." Ino snaps.

"Then, what?"

"Well, Gaara likes you, that's what Naruto said, he said that he finds you peculiar." Ino jumps up and down.

"Really?" Sakura asks, clearly not thinking that Gaara, out of all people would like her.

"Yes, idiot. Now, Sakura, truth or dare?" Ino's eyes gleam.

"Um, truth,"

"Hm, well, never mind. Truth, what can I ask you that I don't already know? Oh! I know. Do you still have a thing for Sasuke? Or have you finally gotten over him?"

"I, don't know."

"... You don't know?"

"Yeah. I'm not sure anymore."

"Well, that's sad."

"Okay! Moving on now." Tenten yells.

"Yeah, Hinata? Truth or dare?" Sakura inquires innocently, once Hinata wakes up.

"T-t-t-truth." she stumbles over her words as her head spins.

"Okay, How long have you loved Naruto?"

"Since, we were children and he saved me from getting picked on." Hinata replies without hesitation.

"I see, so he was your savior."

"Sure... Lia. Truth or dare?"

"Dare!"

Ino starts talking before Hinata can, "I dare you to go downstairs and tell Kiba that you like him back, but only if you really do."

"I do like him, he's cute and so far nice. And I really like his dog, it's so cute!" Lia chirps.

"Then go downstairs and do it!"

"O-okay. Here I go."

**(Lia's POV)**

I walk out of the safety of Sakura's room and to the hallway. Peering down the stairs, I see all the boys talking about the girls they like, comparing their crushes if they have any. Kiba sniffs the air and his eyes look into the hallway. I squeak and hide in the shadows. After a minute, I peer back out and see him chatting with Naruto about which training technique is better.

So, gathering the courage I have left, I walk down the stairs, almost; my left foot catches on my right ankle somehow and I tumble down the stairs loudly. I hear them getting up and rushing over to check on me so I quickly open my eyes and scramble to my feet, yelping out, 'I'm okay!'.

My face flushes a deep red from embarrassment and I gather my composure before stepping into the living room. Everyone looks at me expectantly. I smile weakly but urge it to become brighter as my eyes scan the room. I take a deep, shuddering breath and mumble, "Kiba I like you." once I catch sight of him. Nobody hears me, but they see my lips moving. They look at me with curious eyes.

"Sorry, what was that?" Shikamaru questions.

I sigh, rolling my eyes, and instead look at Akamaru who perks his ears up to hear me.

"Tell Kiba I like him too." I speak quietly so only Akamaru can hear me and he whines to Kiba who looks over to me oddly.

I utter a single 'bye' before leaving the room. It definitely didn't go as I thought it would, so I run upstairs and sit down, quickly asking the next person a question before they can question me about it.

**(Kiba's POV)**

Akamaru whines, saying, "She said she likes you too."

I look up to see Lia who simply mutters 'bye' before turning on her heel and leaving the room; weird. We don't hear from any of the girls again that night, and I am left to think what the _hell_ that was about. I only told Ino that I found her interesting, not that I actually... _liked_ her, like that anyway, not yet at least. Ah, they must have still been playing truth or dare and Ino must have been the one to do something since she loves playing matchmaker.

Akamaru curls up next to me and I move closer to him since he provides more warmth than the blanket. We fall asleep a while later.

**(Next Morning, Sakura's POV)**

The next morning, I wake up earlier than normal so I can make breakfast. I sneak downstairs on my tiptoes and into the kitchen. Soon, I am making eggs, and a lot of them. At least three dozen fried eggs, three or so dozen pancakes, and then I make a lot of orange juice. I smile when I finish. I grab plates and set up the table.

Finally, I hear groaning and shuffling, and then stomachs growling. I smile even more if possible. Ino, Tenten, Hinata, and Lia walk into the room, bright eyed and happy, they've fixed their hair into tangled ponytails but it looks nicer than their bed head, and they smoothed out their clothes. They sit down at the table and start to eat. I pull up a chair and eat too. After three minutes, all the boys shuffle into the room, some having just woken up, others have combed through their hair, a little.

They eagerly sit down and start eating, I smile when all the food's gone ten minutes later. I grab the plates, and carry them into the kitchen and to the sink, then run the water. Scrubbing silently, I listen to the small talk in the dining room.

"Hey, Lia?" Kiba's voice.

"Yeah?" Lia's voice.

"Um, I have a question to ask you."

"Yes?"

"Why did you say what you said last night?" he asks shamelessly and the others seem confused, I can tell by the suffocating silence.

I peek at them from around the corner and watch. Lia shrugs, "It was a dare I had to do if it was true and it was, so I told Akamaru to tell you. Why? Is something wrong?"

Kiba shakes his head and they loom into silence again. I frown and finish up with dishes before I remember Lia had to go to the academy to become a genin before she could take the chuunin exams to become a chuunin. I run my hand through my pink locks and walk into the dining room.

"Lia, get dressed, we leave soon." I say and she nods, getting up swiftly before going to her room.

"Where are you two going? There is still a lot of snow on the ground, so it wouldn't be too wise to go out there." Tenten says.

"She never officially became a genin so Tsunade is making her take a week of the academy to be positive she has the skill to become a ninja." I explain.

"Oh." are their brilliant replies.

I roll my eyes and go get dressed. I meet Lia in the hallway and we walk down together.

"You guys can clean up the mess of blankets and stuff, and feel free to leave whenever." I murmur to them as we slip into our coats and boots.

They all nod and bade us goodbye as we leave. The sun's glare off the snow's surface blinds us immediately and we take a moment to get our bearings before I lead the way to the Academy. Lia follows and I check her into the highest class that's going to graduate soon. Lia hugs me goodbye and sits down where the teacher asks her to sit. I leave with a gut feeling that something's not right, but I can't place my finger on it now; all I know is it will happen sometime in the far future, and I don't want to know what it is.

**(Normal POV)**

A week goes by and Lia successfully becomes a genin. She parades around her new home wearing her new headband but trains with Sakura to get her ready for the Chuunin Exams that will take place in a few weeks. Lia crouches down to dodge an array of kunai thrown at her. She leaps into the air a moment later to get away from Sakura's punch to the ground, sending bits of rock flying in the sky from her monstrous strength.

Lia twirls around swiftly then does a backflip to land on her feet lightly enough to jump backwards to dodge more attacks. Suddenly Sakura pauses and stands up.

"Lia?" her voice is soft.

"Yeah?"

"Why don't you train with your teammates on your genin squad?"

Lia blinks, "Because, they are weak and boring."

Sakura looks her in the eyes sternly, "Either way, you need to train with them. Go on, go find them and train. Don't go hard on them, you still want them to think you possess ordinary genin skills, don't you?"

Lia growls but nods and leaps into the trees to find her teammate's training grounds.

By the time the Chuunin Exams are upon them, Lia is exasperated with her team. They are considerably weak compared to her, and she can't help but feel bad for them. It doesn't help that she's five years _older_ than them either.

Sakura waves Lia goodbye as she follows her team towards the first exam.

**(Lia's POV)**

I walk behind the jounin in charge of our three man squad. My two teammates are two boys, one is named Chris, the other Rai. They both have dark brown hair but Chris has dark brown eyes while Rai has deep blue eyes. They push each other teasingly as they walk ahead of me slightly. Soon we walk into a large building and our sensei leads us to a door. He stops and turns towards us with a large smile.

"Alright! I want you three to do me proud, okay? Good luck and don't give up!" he grins and we grin back too.

"Hai!" then, we walk into the double doors.

The first test, a written exam, is a breeze. Though the questions may have been difficult for my teammates, luckily I knew how to speak to them telepathically so I gave them the answers and we passed easily. The second exam, a journey through the Forest of Death, went smoothly too since I released a single wave of chakra and the other team we needed to get a scroll from, all sensory ninja, were scared shitless. They coughed up the scroll immediately and we arrived at the center of the forest only an hour and fifteen minutes after the exam started.

Very few passed; apparently my wave of power sent teams cowering away in fear and they failed to regain scrolls, fearing that the 'person with the power', as they so kindly put it, was still out there. Lia laughs as she recalls the details in her mind as she spars with Sakura.

Lately Kiba was seen watching her from afar, curious about her, to say the least. Lia grins as she exclaims, "Kiba isn't so bad huh?"

Sakura looks at her oddly, "Why did you suddenly bring him up?" she yells over the sound of their kunai clashing.

"Because, he's been watching me lately I've noticed." Lia grunts as she's pushed away.

Sakura leaps back and throws kunai and senbon at Lia who expertly dodges them all, twisting and spinning rapidly to escape from the weapons.

"Oh! That's right, at the sleepover you two mentioned you found the other... _interesting_." Sakura grins hauntingly at her sister.

"What's so wrong with that?" Lia snaps.

"Nothing!" Sakura giggles, "It's just, you find each other _interesting_! You could just say you like him and be done with it. No harm done and no big deal."

Lia gasps at her, "No big deal?! Please! It's a really big deal! I like him and don't have the nerve to say it!"

Sakura covers her mouth to hide the growing grin but fails as she doubles over with laughter. Lia frowns at her big sister and stomps over to her, hitting her back harshly, though not enough to actually hurt her. Sakura laughs harder as she remembers herself telling her crush over and over that she liked him, yet was rejected every time. It was almost ironic that Lia, now, likes _Kiba_ of all people, and won't tell him, and he feels the same way in return even though it's only been a week since they met. Love at first sight as one would say; it was a rare but beautiful thing that made Sakura envious.

Finally the pink headed girl calmed down and got up, getting into a defensive stance that made Lia squeal.

"Oh really?! I can?!" Lia grins as Sakura nods and Lia gets into an offensive stance, bending her knees slightly and leaning her weight ever so slight forward before she lunged and the two locked into a tense spar session.

By the time they finish five hours later, both are exhausted and nearly drained of chakra. The training grounds are practically destroyed from all the craters it holds and the large puddles of water due to Lia's water jutsu freaking out and growing out of proportion before she could get it under control. The two intertwine their arms as they lean against each other for support so they don't fall over as they wobble home.

Sakura shakily unlocks the door and they stumble inside like drunkards before promptly collapsing on the floor, drained of energy; their front door blows in the slight wind but the noise doesn't alert them of the door being open as they spiral farther into a deep slumber. The two wake up a couple days later in the hospital. Lia groans at being in a hospital bed again but Sakura stills herself as she looks around the room.

Tsunade walks in a few hours later and smiles at them being awake.

"I thought that you would be asleep for a while longer, but it seems that your bodies recover quickly, that's a relief. The two of you will be released tomorrow morning, so stay tight just a while longer, okay?"

Sakura nods and Lia sighs but relents with a short nod a moment later. Tsunade smirks at them before leaving the room quietly. They leave the next morning and decide not to train until they are completely sure they won't use up too much chakra. Two weeks later, after many intense training sessions, the two make their way to the final exam.

"Hey Lia?" Sakura asks as they blend in with the growing crowd.

"What?" Lia glances at her from the corner of her eye.

"Who was it that you are fighting again? I can't seem to remember..."

"I think it was somebody named Matsuri from the Village Hidden in the Sand."

Sakura grins, "That's Gaara's apprentice!"

Lia suddenly grins, remembering the truth or dare game. She nods and nudges Sakura teasingly, though Sakura pays her no heed as they continue walking towards the large arena where the third exam would be held. The pair go and sit in the stands while the first couple rounds take place. Soon, Lia is called down to fight Matsuri. Lia grins as she jumps from the stands and lands evenly on her feet in a crouched position.

Matsuri takes her time in walking down the stairs. Lia stands straight and taps her foot impatiently as she waits. After two minutes Matsuri walks into the arena and Lia smiles. Genma looks between the two.

"Alright, I want this to be a decent fight, okay?" they nod, "You may begin!" he jumps back to the wall of the arena.

They stand there, staring at each other intently, accessing their opponent before Lia disappears. Matsuri blinks and looks around quickly only to be blown forward by a burst of water. Lia lands neatly on her feet as her jutsu subsides and watches as Matsuri swiftly gets up, being keen on not slipping in the puddle under her feet. Lia suddenly disappears again, leaping above Matsuri and sending a storm of kunai and senbon raining down on her. Matsuri reacts immediately and twirls her Johyo above her head, deflecting the weapons with ease.

Lia smirks, it would be a somewhat interesting fight. Lia suddenly goes still once she lands a few feet from Matsuri. Matsuri locks eyes with Lia, a wrong move, and she doubles over, screaming as she grasps her head. The audience tenses as Lia blinks and Matsuri falls to the ground, unconscious; her eyes are glazed over from pain. Lia hides her disappointment at the short fight but smiles shyly when Genma lifts her hand into the air and declares her the winner.

Lia jumps back to her seat and Sakura leans over to her; her eyes watch as Matsuri is lifted onto a stretcher and taken to the infirmary.

"What did you do to Matsuri?" Sakura asks, honestly curious.

"I can't explain it, but it's a really useful thing to know when you are in serious danger."

Sakura frowns, "I don't want you to use that genjutsu unless you are in actual danger, okay?"

Lia nods with a sigh and they sit to watch the next fights. Lia wins the last fight before the third exam is over. The next day, Lia is promoted to chuunin with ease since she has such strong genjutsu skills that are rare, especially since she doesn't have the sharingan. Sakura and Lia celebrate her promotion by having a sleepover with Ino who invites Hinata and Tenten over as well. They play board games, have a pillow fight that ends pretty quickly thanks to their strength, bake a cake that they devour in an hour or so, and tell stories.

But finally, as they are winding down for bed, they play Truth or Dare. Hinata goes first.

"Ino, truth or dare?" she asks.

"Dare. I mean by now do we really even have to ask each other this?"

"Yes, it's the whole point of the game!" Sakura laughs.

Ino rolls her eyes, "So what's my dare?"

Hinata smiles shyly as she thinks, suddenly she gasps as she gets an idea, "I dare you to go ask Sai out since you like him so much!" she speaks without a single stutter thanks to her excitement.

Ino's eyes light up but then fade, "What if he says no?"

"It's a dare! Just go pig!" Sakura urges.

Ino huffs and, while lifting her head, she disappears to Sai's small home. She reappears a moment later, flustered but happy. She squeals while jumping up and down, flapping her arms about as she dances in a small circle.

"He said yes!"

"Good for you! I told you, you had nothing to worry about!" Tenten says with a roll of her eyes.

"No you didn't!" Ino sits down.

"Well, I did in my head."

They giggle, "Lia! Truth or dare?" Ino asks.

Lia grins, "Dare!"

Ino smiles triumphantly, "Alright! I dare you to ask Kiba out!"

Lia chokes on air as she shakes her head frantically.

"Just do it! I mean, like Ino, you have nothing to worry about!" Tenten cheers her on.

After a while of pushing and prodding, Lia gives in and asks them where Kiba lives. Hinata tells her and Lia nods, deciding to walk to his house. They put on their shoes and coats then walk out of the house. Sakura gets them to follow her a few meters behind Lia, though she knows they are following her, she doesn't say anything, silently glad for the support. Lia knocks on his door and yelps when it opens immediately to reveal a tall, rough looking woman.

"Who are you?" Tsume asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, I'm Lia... I was wondering if Kiba is home?"

"Kiba? Why?"

"I wanted to ask him something..."

"If it involves being his girlfriend, be sure to be polite and use the word mate instead. Okay?"

Lia grins and nods, rushing past Tsume once she allows her in. Lia suddenly pauses and looks back nervously.

"His room is down the hall to the right, last door." Tsume says as she walks out of the house.

Lia nods and thanks her, then walks to Kiba's room. She knocks lightly on his door then waits. She hears Akamaru whining and soon Kiba opens his door, ready to yell at his mom for bothering him, again, but stops short when he sees Lia instead. Lia smiles and Kiba allows her into his room, being sure to leave the door open like his mother warned him to.

"Kiba, can I ask you a question?" Lia inquires innocently.

Kiba nods, immediately taking note of her increasing heartbeat and blush slowly spreading across her face.

"Would you, be my..." Lia pauses and remembers his mother's words, "m-mate?"

Kiba blinks, not expecting it but then it slowly dawns on him why his mother left the house. He blushes and scratches the back of his head nervously.

"Mate? Are you sure?" Kiba looks above her head and out his window, seeing his mother and sister looking over their shoulders to watch.

He rolls his eyes and looks back at Lia who bites her lower lip nervously.

"Yeah. To your family, that means something more than being girlfriend/boyfriend, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, so are you still sure?"

Lia looks him straight in the eyes and nods happily, "Yep! I'm sure, but are you okay with it?"

Kiba nods and they smile. Lia reaches on her tiptoes and kisses Kiba's cheek lightly before skipping out of his room and following Sakura, Hinata, Ino and Tenten back to Ino's house.

* * *

**Hello everyone! So, upon coming up with an insanely good idea, there is going to be a sequel to this story. Yay! Yeah, so I will probably post the first chapter in a month once I decide I'm far enough along with it that I'm comfortable with posting it. Anyway, it took me a long time to rewrite this because I had camps and can't bring computers with you, sadly. And another thing, (1) the actual recipe for the homemade vegetable beef soup is on this website:  ?evt19=1&amp;referringHubId=445&amp;scale=12&amp;ismetric=0**

**It took me only a little bit to find a suitable soup for them to eat and it even says that it's a good soup to eat when it snows! So yeah, well, yay for rewriting it to make it better so it will one, get more readers hopefully, and two, set up a good beginning for the sequel which is awesome so far. I only have five chapters, maybe six, so far of the sequel and it's already got about 32,000 words, technically it is exactly 31,997 words, but that doesn't matter! Any tips or ideas, perhaps requests for the next story, let me know in either a review or simply PM me.**

**Reviews are always appreciated! Please do review and criticisms are loved! Thanks for reading!**

**Love,**

**~Fluttershy 2059123~**


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